Within a short time, three Norwegian videos have been published on social media where people hunt people they think are pedophiles. The characters call themselves “pedo hunters”. The last video is from a forest in Luster. An easily recognizable man in his 50s is attacked with a knife and stabbed in several places on the body. Five young people are charged in the case. The man in his 50s is charged with arranging a meeting with children under the age of 16, with the aim of sexual acts. The man has not taken a position on the charges. A 14-year-old is charged with attempted murder. The video has now been seen by over 80,000 people. A corresponding video in Sweden has been seen by over 230,000 people. Kripos takes the use of violence and what various online communities call “Pedo Hunting” very seriously. Head of the intelligence section in Kripos, Guro Skjerve. Photo: The police – Recent developments make us concerned both about the use of serious violence and that young people in their early teens are involved in these groups, says Guro Skjerve, head of the intelligence section at Kripos. Recently, the phenomenon has spread in the Scandinavian countries. – We have seen several cases in Norway where this has escalated into violent situations, says Skjerve. PST investigates links to right-wing extremism – What we have seen from previous cases, both when it comes to right-wing extremism and extreme Islamism, is that such videos can seem dehumanizing, says Martin Bernsen in the Police Security Service (PST). – This means that you are exposed to so much violence that you become hard-skinned and unable to see that an act of violence is actually taking place. It can have an effect in the long term in real life, and not just digitally, he says. PST has been familiar with the phenomenon of “pedo hunters” for a while, but says they haven’t looked at it for a very long time. They are now working to investigate whether these violent videos are linked to a far-right ideology. – We are investigating whether persons who carry out this violence and encourage it are connected to a far-right ideology. – Do they have reason to believe that? – We have not reached a conclusion, but we are working on the matter, says Bernsen. PST comments on the phenomenon in general, and does not comment specifically on the video circulating from Gaupne. Senior adviser in PST, Martin Bernsen, says they are familiar with the phenomenon of “pedo hunter videos”. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB Defends the hunt for pedophiles news has been in contact with the moderator for a newly created account that encourages “taking those pedophiles”. In a short time, the account has gained 500 members. Those involved defend the online ban and that violence is “the only language pedophiles understand”. – Our aim is to extradite, punish and intimidate the perpetrators. We believe that the legal community is not doing enough, and therefore feel compelled to take matters into our own hands. news does not know the identity of those behind the account. The police are also blamed for not caring enough about these types of cases and that too little is thus done to prevent abuse of minors. One of the people who will be behind the newly created account also says that they are not afraid to use force. Threats, punches and kicks Mayor of Luster, Andreas Wiese, says that he is surprised that such trends have also reached them. Luster mayor Andreas Wiese. Photo: Ingeborg Grindheim Slinde / news – We may have thought that Luster was free of such incidents and activity, but then this becomes a wake-up call that social media platforms are global and Luster is part of the global. The violence episode last week has upset the entire local community. Many of the pupils at the secondary schools in the municipality have seen the video. Both the police and other agencies ask that such videos are not shared further. Police attorney Janne Ringseth Heltne. Photo: Tone Berge / news Police attorney Janne Ringseth Heltne in the West police district reminds that it is a criminal offense to share offensive images of acts of violence. Apart from that, she cannot say anything more about the background of the video, and why the young people and the man in his 50s met at the forest clearing in Gaupne in Sogn Rolv Knudsen is the legal counsel for the accused in his 50s. He has not seen the video himself, but reacts to the sharing of an identifying picture of the man. – My client reacts to the video. There is an additional charge. – The police will investigate Kripos does not ignore the fact that there may be more Norwegian videos than they are aware of. Photo: Ingeborg Grindheim Slinde Skjerve understands that abuse against minors arouses strong reactions, but underlines that it is the police and prosecutors who must investigate and prosecute offenses in Norway, while it is the courts that judge. – It can be a dark story in such cases, as victims of hanging and violence may refuse to report to the police because they themselves have done something that could be punishable, says Skjerve. She points out that civil protection groups are problematic for several reasons and that it is a criminal offense to share videos of people who have been subjected to violence. Published 19.06.2024, at 16.35
ttn-69
The police are worried about violent videos being spread on the internet – news Vestland
